The Texas Department of Agriculture announced today that cotton producers in the Western High Plains Boll Weevil Eradication Zone have voted to continue eradication operations. Final results were 804 voting "for" and 129 voting "against" continuation.

TDA issued 2,813 ballots to cotton producers who were eligible to vote in the referendum. A total of 933 valid ballots were postmarked by the Dec. 12 deadline and counted.

In addition to deciding if an eradication program should be continued in the zone, voters elected Don Parrish to serve as the board member on the statewide board of directors for the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation Inc. Parrish has farmed in the zone for the past 27 years and has served as a Foundation board member since 1998.

The Western High Plains Zone includes all of Andrews, Gaines and Yoakum counties and portions of Terry and Lynn counties.